Way Out West [Hardcover]

Jane Stern (Author), Michael Stern (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1993

This work celebrates the American West, presenting a dreamscape that continues to inspire fashion, song, movies and lifestyles. The book is a tribute to the magical frontier that still lives on in the hearts of millions of Americans who went to sleep each night under a Hopalong Cassidy blanket, and dreamed of what it would be like to be in the saddle under a Texas moon, serenading a herd of restless cattle as the coyotes howled. The book includes sidebars, cowboy songs to sing and poems to read, recipes for making the best four-alarm chili, instructions for how to crease a cowboy hat, how to spot high-quality turquoise jewelry, and guides for identifying the exotic cacti and critters of the desert. The photographs include the most outrageous dude ranch fashions, glamorous rodeo queens, vintage linen postcards of roadside attractions and pictures of almost every famous movie cowboy kissing his favourite horse. A shopping index directs readers to sources for cowboy collectibles, books, fashions, custom boots and saddles, furniture, foodstuffs and information about the West. Jane and Michael Stern are the authors of "The Encyclopedia of Pop Culture", "The Encyclopedia of Bad Taste", "Roadfood", "American Gourmet" and "Elvis World".

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Yee ha! Those "pawdners" of American pop culture, the Sterns, are back. Having deciphered the Elvis phenomenon ( Elvis World , LJ 10/1/87), the 1960s ( Sixties People , LJ 1/90), tackiness ( The Encyclopedia of Bad Taste , LJ 11/1/90), and mass culture ( Encyclopedia of Pop Culture , LJ 10/15/92), the prolific authors have now turned to the American West, "the West of cowboys in silver spurs singing 'Whoppee ti-yi-yo,' of smoke curling up above Sioux tepee encampments in the Badlands, of Roy and Dale's 'Happy Trails.' " Twirling their trivia lasso, they have rounded up every minute fact and detail about this romantic region into a lavishly illustrated volume. Yet the Sterns' selection is arbitrary, focusing primarily on the white male cowboy world of the 1940s and 1950s. Gene Autrey and Roy Rogers are here, but where are Bonanza's Little Joe and Hoss Cartwright? The Sterns devote an entire section to "Horses and the Cowboys Who Love Them," but what about gals like Annie Oakley and Calamity Jane? Still, Western buffs will enjoy this. Better brand your copy before it disappears from the shelves!-- Wilda Williams, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The authors of Roadfood and other popular dining-Americana guides take a look at the eateries, activities, attire, and residents of the western states. Similar in its scope to Gail Gilchriest's The Cowgirl Companion , the Sterns' guide focuses more on cowboys, with a nodding look at Native American culture. Looking for rodeos, the hottest chili in New Mexico, great western barbecues, or where to shop for cowboy collectibles? The Sterns have a passle of suggestions mixed in with their superficial tour. Denise Perry Donavin

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins; 1st edition (November 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060168730
• ISBN-13: 978-0060168735
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 9.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #539,339 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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